Grand Canadian Rockies — Self-Launched Edition

Arrive at YVR and take the SkyTrain Canada Line downtown (~£6, 25 min) — no transfer needed. Check into a downtown hostel or the YWCA Hotel, then walk the seawall into Yaletown and catch the Aquabus ferry across False Creek to Granville Island Public Market (~£2). Pick up fruit, bread, cheese and coffee for tomorrow's journey and eat dinner from a food truck on the island or cheap ramen on Robson Street. Join a free Hostel walking tour if your hostel runs one.

🚌SkyTrain Canada Line from YVR; Aquabus foot ferry across False Creek

🛏Downtown Vancouver hostel dorm (HI Vancouver Downtown or Samesun) — £32-42

• →Seawall walk and Yaletown loop
• →Granville Island Public Market
• →Aquabus ferry
• →Cheap dinner on Robson Street

Start early with a 90-minute walk or bike loop through Stanley Park to the Brockton Point totem poles — the same stop the tour makes, minus the coach. Then take the SkyLynx or Epic Rides bus from downtown Vancouver to Whistler along the Sea to Sky Highway (~£28-35, 2 hr 15), the same cliffs-and-fjord drive, with Howe Sound on your right. In Whistler, the free village shuttle and Valley Trail connect everything; walk the village and the Lost Lake foreshore in the afternoon and self-cater dinner from the Whistler Grocery Store.

🚌SkyLynx or Epic Rides coach Vancouver–Whistler, ~£30; walking and Valley Trail on foot

🛏Whistler HI Hostel or shared apartment in Village North — £42-55

• →Brockton Point totem poles in Stanley Park
• →Sea to Sky Highway coach with Howe Sound views
• →Whistler Village orientation walk
• →Lost Lake foreshore stroll

Book the Squamish Lil'wat Cultural Centre's Indigenous-led interpretive walk on the Lost Lake Trail directly (roughly £22-28; they run it most days in summer — reserve online the week before). The tour's Cultural Land Ambassador and indigenous tea are replicated almost exactly by this. Afternoon: free swimming at Lost Lake, or pay for the PEAK 2 PEAK gondola (~£48) if the weather is clear — the alpine hiking on Whistler Mountain is excellent value once you're up there. Budget an evening at a village pizza place.

🚌On foot / Valley Trail bike hire if preferred (~£15 for 2 hrs)

🛏Whistler HI Hostel or shared apartment — £42-55

• →Indigenous-led Lost Lake Trail walk with SLCC ambassador (~£25)
• →Indigenous tea and cultural centre visit
• →Optional PEAK 2 PEAK gondola (~£48)
• →Lost Lake swim

There's no direct Whistler–Sun Peaks bus, so this is the one day where the self-launched version is logistically fiddly: take the early SkyLynx back to Vancouver (~£30) then Ebus or Rider Express to Kamloops (~£35, 4 hr), and from Kamloops the Sun Peaks shuttle or a local taxi (~£15) up to the village. It's a long day — bring food. Book two nights here. In the late afternoon walk the Shuswap Medicine Trail and grab dinner supplies; the village is compact and quiet.

🚌SkyLynx Whistler–Vancouver ~£30 + Ebus Vancouver–Kamloops ~£35 + Sun Peaks shuttle ~£15

🛏Sun Peaks lodge or hostel room (Cahilty Lodge / Sun Peaks Hostel) — £40-55

• →Shuswap Medicine Trail walk
• →Sun Peaks village wander
• →Self-catered dinner

Morning hike on the Sunburst Loop from the village — a steady climb to wildflower meadows with views over the Shuswap highlands, free and self-guided. Early afternoon, ride back to Kamloops and take the Rider Express or Ebus north to Jasper (~£40, about 4.5 hrs via the Yellowhead Highway) — a much prettier route than the tour's private drive but slower. Alternatively rent a car one-way in Kamloops (from ~£60/day plus fuel) if you're travelling with others and want the Mt Robson wildflower stop. Arrive Jasper, pay the national park entry at the gate (a Discovery Pass covering Banff and Jasper for the group of parks is ~£85 per adult for a year — buy online before you go).

🚌Sun Peaks shuttle to Kamloops ~£15 + Rider Express Kamloops–Jasper ~£40

🛏Jasper hostel (HI Jasper) dorm — £38-50

• →Sunburst Loop hike
• →Yellowhead Highway to Jasper
• →Evening in Jasper village

Use Jasper's own Maligne Lake shuttle (~£18 return from town, book ahead) and do the self-guided Moose Lake and Mary Schäffer loops from the lake shore — no cruise needed for the best hiking. If you want the boat to Spirit Island (~£46 with Maligne Lake Cruise, self-bookable via GetYourGuide or direct), book early; it sells out in July-August. Back in town, either hike the easy Beauvert Lake circuit or take the Jasper SkyTram (~£35) for the sunset. Jasper is also the single best place on this itinerary for spotting elk and black bear from the roadside — walk with bear spray and never approach wildlife.

🚌Jasper Maligne Lake shuttle ~£18 return; local transit and on foot

🛏HI Jasper hostel dorm — £38-50

• →Maligne Lake hiking (self-guided)
• →Mary Schäffer / Moose Lake trail
• →Optional Spirit Island cruise ~£46
• →Beauvert Lake loop or Jasper SkyTram ~£35

The centrepiece. Take the Brewster/Sundog Icefields Parkway Connector (Jasper–Lake Louise, ~£70-85 one-way, book weeks ahead) which stops at Athabasca Falls, the Columbia Icefield Discovery Centre and Peyto Lake, or rent a car one-way (from ~£75 plus one-way fee) for full flexibility. At the Icefields Centre, self-book the guided Athabasca Glacier ice walk (~£72 with a certified glacier guide — worth the money and far better than the big snow-coach). Carry on to Lake Louise for the waterfront walk and then bus down to Banff (~£10, 1 hr). Note the tour's own reviews flag that Jasper and Banff hotels are often far from town — book central Banff instead.

🚌Icefields Parkway Connector Jasper–Lake Louise ~£75 + regional bus to Banff ~£10

🛏HI Banff Alpine Centre or Banff hostel dorm — £42-55

• →Sunwapta Falls and Athabasca Falls
• →Columbia Icefield Discovery Centre
• →Peyto Lake viewpoint
• →Guided Athabasca Glacier walk ~£72
• →Lake Louise waterfront walk

Take the Roam Transit route 8X to Lake Louise (~£6 each way, reserving a seat in summer) and hike the Fairview Lookout trail — 2.5 km with the classic Chateau-and-glacier view and no cost. Walk through the Fairmont's public areas for free, then return to Banff. In the afternoon, soak at the Banff Upper Hot Springs (~£14) and if the weather holds take the Sulphur Mountain gondola (~£35) for sunset, or hike the free switchbacks up instead. Canoe hire on the Bow River is ~£25-40 if you want it.

🚌Roam Transit 8X to Lake Louise ~£12 return; free local bus in Banff

🛏HI Banff Alpine Centre or Banff hostel dorm — £42-55

• →Fairview Lookout hike
• →Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise interior
• →Banff Upper Hot Springs ~£14
• →Sulphur Mountain gondola ~£35 or free switchback hike

Use the free/discounted Roam Transit summer service to Lake Minnewanka (~£4) and walk the lakeshore path to Two Jack Lake — Mt Rundle reflections, bighorn sheep and, if you're lucky, the occasional bear at distance. Stop in Canmore on the way back for lunch and the Elevation Place climbing wall if you want an indoor afternoon. Then take the Red Arrow or FlixBus Banff–Calgary (~£22, 1 hr 45). In Calgary, walk Stephen Avenue and grab a cheap dinner; the Calgary Tower (~£10) and Buffalo Nations Luxton Museum (~£6) are both easily done independently the next morning.

🚌Roam Transit to Lake Minnewanka ~£4; Red Arrow or FlixBus Banff–Calgary ~£22

🛏HI Calgary City Centre hostel dorm — £32-40

• →Lake Minnewanka and Two Jack Lake walk
• →Canmore lunch stop
• →Stephen Avenue evening walk
• →Optional Calgary Tower ~£10

Morning at Fort Calgary or the Buffalo Nations Luxton Museum to close the loop on the Indigenous history you started with in Whistler, then a walk along the Bow River pathways. The CTrain from downtown to the airport is only ~£2 (route 300 bus or the NE line plus bus), so no taxi needed. If your flight is late, the Glenbow-area shops and Inglewood's coffee roasters make for a relaxed last afternoon.

🚌CTrain / Route 300 bus to Calgary airport ~£2

🛏Departure day — no overnight

• →Buffalo Nations Luxton Museum ~£6
• →Bow River pathway walk
• →Inglewood coffee and last-minute shopping